Two expats arrested for kidnapping and making ransom demands

Two Bangladeshi individuals have been arrested for kidnapping another Bangladeshi man and making ransom demands from his family.

According to a Criminal Court order, Sadigul Mia and Mohamed Azizul, both 37, were arrested for kidnapping Mohamed Shajahan.

As per the order, Shajahan was kidnapped last Friday at around 12:40am, and was assaulted. Police received reports of this and tracked Shajahan's phone number, locating him in a residence in Ma. Ranauraa Goalhi.

Police went to the location, and saw Shajahan exiting the SI Guesthouse on that road. When questioned, he told Police that Azizul and some other individuals had kidnapped and assaulted him, the court order says.

Police then entered the room where Shajahan is said to have been kept in, where they found the two individuals accused of hurting him. The two were arrested from the scene.

The court order further said that Sadiqul, who works in Thilafushi, had been living in Maldives without a valid visa. It further states that Sadiqul denied having kidnapped or assaulted an individual.

In Azizul's case, the court order said that, he, too, did not hold a valid visa. Azizul is cited as having said that Shajahan had failed to pay him dues for work conducted despite repeated requests. Azizul said that due to this, he had brought Shajahan to the room and hit him.

The court order says that the two were placed in remand in custody due to the risk of them leaving the country.